Matilde Roe Honored as Most Valuable Female Athlete; Lumberjack Men Place Second by Just 1.33 Points

BIG SKY PRESS RELEASE
LIVE RESULTS
 
MISSOULA, Mont. (May 11, 2019) - Northern Arizona University's track & field program ended the 2019 Big Sky Conference Outdoor Championships on Saturday at Dornblaser Field at the University of Montana in Missoula, Mont.
 
The men's squad finished in second-place on the team leaderboard with 134 points, while the Lumberjack women closed the weekend in sixth place with 65 points.
 
Ten NAU male and two female student-athletes earned All-Conference honors for placing in the top-three in their respective events.
 
Matilde Roe was honored as the 2019 Big Sky Female Most Valuable Athlete after earning the silver medal in the Women's Shot Put (14.69m), Discus (48.11m) and Javelin (46.65m), securing a total of 24 points towards the Northern Arizona women's team score of 65. 
 
Southern Utah's men's team earned the conference title on the last race of the evening, the 4x400m Relay. The 'Jacks entered that final event with a slight lead to the Thunderbirds. By the time the final lap finished SUU put themselves in first by just under a point and a half at 135.33 in one of the closest battles in Big Sky Outdoor Conference Championships history.
 
Sacramento State was crowned as the championship team for the women's end of things, scoring 144 points.
 
It was a day that would be filled with adversity for the Lumberjacks and while it was still a successful meet in regards to efforts and performances the NAU men fell just short of the title. However, three male student-athletes were crowned as individual champions in their respective events.
 
Parker Joens earned his first gold medal off of a 18.74m throw on his third attempt in the Men's Shot Put. Joens set a huge  PR on that throw and was able to add an early 10 points to the Lumberjack team score. With that throw he also positioned himself to have the 22nd best mark in the NCAA West Region.
 
Geordie Beamish, the NCAA Division I National Champion in the indoor mile, added another piece of hardware to his impressive collegiate collection after taking first in the Men's 1500m Run with a time of 3:44.37.
 
The 5000m Run saw Tyler Day dominate as he finished in 14:43.86, just under seven seconds in front of the next closest finisher, Aidan Reed of Southern Utah (14:50.06).
 
An injury to sprinter Tyren Wolfe's right calf in the Men's 100m Dash mid-way through the day had a ripple effect on some events that would have been key contributions to the Lumberjacks fight for first. With the recent departure of Christopher Grant, the loss of Wolfe was a big factor in why NAU finished in second. His injury would result in him not being able to compete in the Men's 200m Dash, 400m Dash and 4x400m.
 
DISTANCE
 
Theo Quax joined Beamish on the podium for the Men's 1500m Run after taking home the bronze medal with a time of 3:45.87, along with gaining six more points for the 'Jacks. Luis Grijalva (Fourth - 3:46.68), Brodey Hastey (Sixth - 3:48.69) and Tyler Day (3:49.58) all performed well enough to have the five men collectively add 25 points to the Lumberjacks team score.
 
With Tyler Day currently having the top time in NCAA Division I in the Men's 5000m Run, his victory in that event on Saturday was an affirmation of his current process of trying to win an individual national title.

"When it comes to the Big Sky my main thing is all about team points," said Day. "We are each willing to do anything we can for our program. This meet is about the team as a whole. However, I see this as a stepping stone; now it is time to settle down and get ready for regionals in Sacramento."

Hastey also saw some time on the podium as he won the bronze medal in the Men's 5000m Run. His time of 14:53.55 resulted in six more points for the 'Jacks. Quax also came in fifth in the Men's 800m Run. His time of 1:51.31 put four points on to NAU's score.
 
True freshman Ryan Raff (Fourth - 14:59.06), Blaise Ferro (Fifth - 14:59.57) and Grijalva (Six - 14:59.75) combined for 18 points in the Men's 5000m Run.
 
Delaney Rasmussen and Pipi Eitel both earned points for the Lumberjacks in the Women's 1500m Run, with Rasmussen coming in at fifth-place and Eitel in sixth to contribute seven points to NAU's score. Rasmussen also added an additional point to the Lumberjack women's total after she came in eighth-place in the Women's 5000m Run.
 
Maggie Carruth earned three points for NAU off of a sixth-place finish in the Women's 800m Run.
 
THROWS
 
Along with Joens championship effort, Jake Arnold took fourth-place in the Men's Shot Put. His throw of 17.36m that was on his third attempt of the day and was able to add five crucial early points for Northern Arizona.
 
"I was really please with mine and Big Jake's performances in the Shot Put," said Joens. "We were happy to get things started for us today. I want to take a moment to show appreciation and gratitude for our head throws coach Jason Schutz. He has made a huge difference in our training and process."
 
SPRINTS/HURDLES
 
Another silver medal would accompany Roe's three after Jasmine Malone came in second-place in the Women's 400m Dash. Malone's time of 53.70 would gain eight points for NAU. Teammate Miracle Onyemaobi brought that events total team points for the 'Jacks to 12 as she came in fifth.
 
In the Women's 4x400m NAU came in eighth to gain one point towards the team total.
 
Khalil Dorsey's came in fifth as well in both the Men's 110m Hurdles and 100m Dash giving the 'Jacks eight points in total in those two events.
 
Carter Bracken placed sixth in the Men's 400m Hurdles off of a 53.47 time which would see three points added to NAU name on the team leaderboard.
 
JUMPS
Cameron Rayford placed eighth on a 14.45m leap in the Men's Triple Jump, earning one additional point towards the Northern Arizona score.
 
Individual Winners

Women's
Hammer – Hannah Feilzer, Montana, 63.97 meters (209-10)
High Jump – Lindsey Johnson, Weber State, 1.80 meters (5-10.75)
Discus – Shantel Nnaji, Sacramento State, 49.96 meters (163-11)
Triple Jump – Brittany Patterson, Sacramento State, 12.35 meters (40-6.25)
100 Hurdles – Tawnie Moore, Weber State, 13.11
400 meters – Shilah Bedingfield, Sacramento State, 53.02
100 meters – Emily Morgan, Weber State, 11.84
800 meters – Linnea Saltz, Southern Utah, 2:07.63
400 Hurdles – Kate Sorenson, Weber State, 58.43
200 meters – Shilah Bedingfield, Sacramento State, 23.74
5,000 meters – Angie Nickerson, Southern Utah, 16:38.08

Men's
Shot Put – Parker Joens, Northern Arizona, 18.74 meters (61-5.75)
Triple Jump – Keshun McGee, Eastern Washington, 15.52 meters (50-11)
Pole Vault – Larry Still, Eastern Washington, 5.02 meters (16-5.5)
Javelin – Skylar Porcaro, Southern Utah 71.57 meters (234-9)
1500 meters – Geordie Beamish, Northern Arizona 3:44.37
110 Hurdles – Devon Montgomery, Southern Utah, 14.15
400 meters – Justin Lewis, Southern Utah, 46.55
100 meters – Treyshon Malone, Idaho State, 10.40
800 meters – George Espino, Southern Utah, 1:49.94
400 Hurdles – Drake Schneider, Montana State, 51.27
200 meters – Treyshon Malone, Idaho State, 21.18
5000 meters – Tyler Day, Northern Arizona, 14:43.86

Follow @NAUTrackField on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for all the latest up-to-date information on the Northern Arizona outdoor track & field program.